Coupler



COUPLER Find Feb. 4. 1931 ,7: l Il 'i5 Patented Aug. 16, 1932 UNITEDSTATES MARTIN A'. ANDERSEN, :or INDIANAPOLIS, ymaintainer 'LGQUPLEB lAppncanquiined February 4, i931. serial No; slaan.

This invention relates to the art of couplers for use in interconnectingonevehiclek to another and finds an application in toytrains as well asin full size .vehicles such as truck trailers and the like. f

A primary object of my invention is'to priovide a simple mechanism whichmay be" of exactly the samestructure whether applied to the front orrear end of a vehicle whereby two vehicles Amaybe coupled one to theother by simply pushing the couplerstogether.

Another primary object of my'invention is to provide a coupling meanswhich re# quires no pins and which has a double connecting feature forthe purpose ofsafety.

`A further important object of 'theinve'n-y tionis to provide couplingmeans having a high factor of safety without'having'to employ any largemass of metal, my invention permitting the employment of pressed metalparts.

These and other objects will become ap parent in the followingdescription ofthe invention as illustrated in the accompanying drawing,in which Fig. 1 is a fragmentary side elevation of two opposing couplingmembers before being connected; i f i Fig. 2, a top plan view of thesemembers; Fi g. 3, a side elevationof the two members interconnected; 7 hFig. 4;, a view in perspective of the latch member; i 4 Fig. 5, an endelevation of a coupling member;and l' Fig. 6 is a top plan View ofarmodiied' form of the coupling member.,

Like characters of reference indicate like parts throughout the severalviews in the drawing. y

I form a coupling member to have a draw bar 10 and have one edge turnedvertically upwards and bent around forwardly in a U- 4- shape to have atongue 11 projecting beyond 5 the draw bar 10 and in spaced apartparallel relation to the upturned member 12, the tongue 11 beingextended forwardlyy from over the draw bar 10. Both the side member 12and tongue 11 are provided with opposing notches 13 and 14 respectivelycut from their upper edges. The tongue ,11 has a second notchl cut fromits yupper edge 'spacedbe- Ayond the notch 14.

I form amamantar, Fig.' 4., having :the

side bars 16 and17, thef forward endsl'of which are turned upwardly andrearwardly slightly and are interconnected at their :uppermost ends bythe'cross link 18. A tie bar 19 interconnects theL side bars jst `backofthe bends. The rear ends of the side ba'rsl and '17 areturned upwardlyslightly and are united* by the cross bar 20in the center of which fromthe under side extends a tongue 21.v I slip this latching member overthe draw bar`10'to have the cross bars'18 and20 above and the bar 19belowa'nd ydrop thetongue 21 downthrough a hole in the drawbar and bendthis tongue rearwardlyslightly to se-y cure the latching member inplacepivotally y K so that the forward 'end may be' rockedV up,- wardly totheli'mit position as fixed by the tie Vbar 19 striking the under sideof the draw bar. Normally 'the tiebar 18dr0ps across the tongue 11 andsidef member 12 to' rest in v the notches 14 and'13.` y Y A I formasecond coupling member'` generally designated by the 'numeral 22whichjis an exact duplicate of the structure aboveV de-` scribed. ',Whena coupling is to `bemade between the two members, they,are'broughtv toward each other as illustrated in Figs. 1 'and 2 to have the tongues 11and' 411 approach each other in substantially parallel lines. Thecouplersare continued one toward the other to have the tongue 11 pass"between the tongue lland the side member 12to strike the cross Abar 18,rockit upwardly and have" it drop into the notchl. At'the Sametime thetongue 11 has raised the bar 18, passed thereunder and received they barin a notch 15,. The twovcouplers are-then in the posi-y tion asindicatedlin Fig. 3 and arefsecurely interconnected one with the othernot only by one cross bar but by thetwo bars v18 and 18'.'vr To uncouplethe members, both'of the attach# ing latches are raised upwardly asindicated bythe dash lines in Fig.'3 vwhereupon the couplersmay bepulled/apart one from the other.

' The form ass'hownin Fig.. permits the l ed form from the abovedescribed structure being the method of forming the tongue and sidemember on the draw bar.

WhileI have here described and shown my invention in the one best formas nowknown to me, it is obvious that structural variations may be hadwithout departing from the spirit of the invention, and I, therefore donot desire to be limited to that precise form, ln'orV any more than maybe required by the following claims. l

I claim:

. 1. In a coupling device, a latching member having side bars, the rearends of which are bent u wardly andthe forward ends also being, entupwardly, said forward ends being of greater length than the rear ends,a cross bar uniting the rear ends, a tongue extending from the rearcross bar, a tie bar between the' side bars near the upwardbend of saidforward ends, and a cross bar uniting said forward ends, a draw bar,anda tongue carried by the draw bar, said latching member being threadedover said draw bar-tongue and draw bar to have said front and rear crossbars thereabove and said tie bar therebelow, said draw bar having aholereceiving said cross bar tongue therethrough, and said draw bar `tonguehaving a. notch across its upper side. f 2. Ina coupling device, alatching member having side bars, the rear ends of which are bent uwardly and the forwardyends also being lient upwardly, said forward endsbeing of greater length-than the rear ends,

a. cross bar uniting the :rear ends, a tongue extendingfrom the rearcrossbar, a tie bar between the side bars `near the upward bend of saidforward ends, anda cross bar uniting saidforward ends, a drawbar, and atongue carriedby the draw bar, said latching member being'threadedover'sad draw bartongue and draw barto have said front and rear'crossbars thereabove and said tie bar therebelow, said draw bar having ahole4 receiving said cross bar tongue therethrough, and said drawbartongue having a notch across its upper side, said draw bar tonguealso having a second notch in'which said front crossbar may rest.

3. In a coupler, two counterpart members each having a. side member, atongue spaced laterally from and extending longitudinally beyond theside member, each tongue and side member having opposing notches .acrosstheir upper sides, and each tongue having a second notchacross its upperside spaced outwardly from its other notch beyond the opposing sidemmber,'and a latch vmember having a cross L link adapted to fall acrossand rest in the f. opposing notches in the tongue and side memberwhereby the extending end of one tongue may enter between the othertongue and its opposing side member and have the cross link across thenotches thereof also pass through the second notch of the one tonguesaid latch member having side bars extending from the ends of the crosslink to below the tongue and end members and a cross bar joining theside bars below the tongue and side member.

4. In a. coupler, two counterpart members eachhaving a side member, atongue spaced laterally from and extending longitudinally beyond theside member, each tongue and sidewmember having opposing notches acrosstheir upper sides, and each tongue having a second notch across itsupper side spaced'outwardly from its other notch beyond the opposingside member, and a latch member having a cross link adapted to fallacross and rest in the opposing notches in the tongue and side memberwhereby the extending end of one tongue may enter between the othertongue and its opposing side member and have the cross link across thenotches thereof also pass through the second notchof the one tongue, anda floor between each tongue andits opposite sidel member to prevent thetongue entered thereover from dropping away from the cross link passingthereover.

5. In a coupler, two counterpart members each having a side member, atongue spaced laterally from and extending longitudinally beyond theside member, each tongue and side 'member having opposing notches acrosstheir upper sides, and each tongue having a second notch across itsupper side spaced outwardly from its other notch beyond the opposingside member, and a latch member having a cross link adapted to fallacross and rest in the opposing notches in the tongue and side member-vwhereby the extending end of one tongue may enter between the othertongue and its opposing side member and have the cross link across thenotches thereof also pass through the second notch of the one tongue,and a Hoor between each tongue and its opposite side member to preventAthe tongue entered thereover from dropping away from the cross linkpassing thereover, said latch member having side bars extendingdownwardly from the ends of the cross link to below the tongue and sidemember and across bar joining the side bars under said tongue and sidemember.

In testimony whereof, I aiiix my signature.

MARTIN A. ANDERSEN.

ico

